One year ago, one of the most memorable fires in Baltimore's history paralyzed the city's most infamous venue, known as The Block, and the damage is still noticeable.

Black smoke swallowed up the sky on Dec. 6, 2010. The plume mushroomed over the city, as flames leaped out of the Gayety Show World on East Baltimore Street. The inferno gutted one building and forced workers onto the street.

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"It was chaos," bystander John Cadwell said at the time.

Firefighters spent all night showering the scene with water to make sure the fire didn't spread. Investigators said they believe someone set the blaze, but they don't know how.

A year later, the fire's imprint is still fresh as 404 E. Baltimore Street and a neighboring building are still boarded up.

"I think it's sad. The Block is alive, and you've got these buildings sitting here with nothing being done with them," said Bronwind Turner, who witnessed the fire and walks past the buildings every day to get to her job at the courthouse. She said she's surprised no new businesses have moved in.

"It's an opportunity for a different type of business to come into the neighborhood," she said.

An owner of the corner building told 11 News that it would be prohibitively expensive to get it back up to code, considering space is renting for less in such a bad economy.

Still, some who work at neighboring clubs are pulling for a new venue that would boost business for everyone.

"We need some bigger and better clubs that will catch people's eyes, like Hustler. That took over and brought a lot more business down here," a woman named Jennifer told 11 News. She said more competition would be a good thing.

Meanwhile, there is still a $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction of the person who caused the fire. Anyone with information is urged to call 888-ATF-FIRE.